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Hello From New Zealand

Colleen.C

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Colleen.C Newbie
Colleen.C
Posted

Hi all :)

I have been on the gluten-free diet for about 6 weeks after many years of suffering with stomach pains and D and.. after reading this forum.. many other problems including depression.

Celiacs showed up in a blood test about 2 years ago but my doctor says it's nothing to worry about. She has been been referring me to the hospital for about 9 years now and I have suffered with these problems for over 17 years! You have to be dying before the hospital will see you so nothing has been done about my symptoms except blaming it on food poisoning..which none of my family get at the same time as me..or irritable bowel disorder.

I have been skinny for many years but over the last 5 or 6 years have had drastic weight loss. I can put it on now and then but get sick and lose it all plus more every time.

I recently went to my doctor and cried like a baby because I was so worried about my weight and the constant tiredness and depression. She seems to think that 47 kgs is a good weight for me!! I once weighed 10 1/2 stone so 47 kgs is not good for me especially since all my bones are sticking out now and I have lost most of my muscles.

Anyway I wouldn't leave until she did something and all she would do was give me a "Green Script" for sports Waikato. They rang me and after talking to them they referred me to a dietitian. She asked me a lot of questions and is convinced that I have Celiacs. After reading this forum I agree with her.

A few days after starting the diet I felt much better. I have stuffed up a few times and one or two local chefs have stuffed up for me as well :angry:

I find now that I am really sensitive to anything with gluten and get the bloated stomach almost straight away and the pains and D within 2 or 3 hours.

I have always had a problem with milk and 4 of my children were born with lactose intolerance, problems with soy milk and one even with breast milk so I am trying to keep off dairy as well but today I went to bin inn and bought some new flours. I can't stand rice flour. I find it very gritty so I got some buckwheat flour, soy flour and some rolled buckwheat for my muesli.

I ate some of the muesli and when my loaf of bread was cooled down I ate 2 slices of it..it was very nice too..but I got the bloated stomach again but nothing else. I'm just hoping I'll get some sleep tonite.

So what I'm wondering is this..could it have been the buckwheat flour or the soy flour?

I'm so hoping I don't have to give up Soy as well.

Has anyone else been sick with buckwheat flour?

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mushroom Proficient
mushroom
Posted
Hi all :)

I have been on the gluten-free diet for about 6 weeks after many years of suffering with stomach pains and D and.. after reading this forum.. many other problems including depression.

Celiacs showed up in a blood test about 2 years ago but my doctor says it's nothing to worry about. She has been been referring me to the hospital for about 9 years now and I have suffered with these problems for over 17 years! You have to be dying before the hospital will see you so nothing has been done about my symptoms except blaming it on food poisoning..which none of my family get at the same time as me..or irritable bowel disorder.

I have been skinny for many years but over the last 5 or 6 years have had drastic weight loss. I can put it on now and then but get sick and lose it all plus more every time.

I recently went to my doctor and cried like a baby because I was so worried about my weight and the constant tiredness and depression. She seems to think that 47 kgs is a good weight for me!! I once weighed 10 1/2 stone so 47 kgs is not good for me especially since all my bones are sticking out now and I have lost most of my muscles.

Anyway I wouldn't leave until she did something and all she would do was give me a "Green Script" for sports Waikato. They rang me and after talking to them they referred me to a dietitian. She asked me a lot of questions and is convinced that I have Celiacs. After reading this forum I agree with her.

A few days after starting the diet I felt much better. I have stuffed up a few times and one or two local chefs have stuffed up for me as well :angry:

I find now that I am really sensitive to anything with gluten and get the bloated stomach almost straight away and the pains and D within 2 or 3 hours.

I have always had a problem with milk and 4 of my children were born with lactose intolerance, problems with soy milk and one even with breast milk so I am trying to keep off dairy as well but today I went to bin inn and bought some new flours. I can't stand rice flour. I find it very gritty so I got some buckwheat flour, soy flour and some rolled buckwheat for my muesli.

I ate some of the muesli and when my loaf of bread was cooled down I ate 2 slices of it..it was very nice too..but I got the bloated stomach again but nothing else. I'm just hoping I'll get some sleep tonite.

So what I'm wondering is this..could it have been the buckwheat flour or the soy flour?

I'm so hoping I don't have to give up Soy as well.

Has anyone else been sick with buckwheat flour?

Hi Colleen, and hello from ChCh. I am a bin inn shopper too, but they don't have sorghum :( Most down here haven't even heard of it. I have only had buckwheat pancakes, but had no problem with them. However, I did find out after becoming gluten free (five months) that I am extremely sensitive to soy also. Sorry to have to mention this because it seems like soy is the favourite thing to put in foods when they take the gluten out. And therefore I was eating much more soy than previously (which was practically none). However, it did not give me bloating; made me itch all over instead.

As for the bloating, I noticed immediate improvement, but then mine was pretty severe--so bad that if I were constipated and it could not come out that way I would actually pass out, which was all a bit embarrassing :o

Anyway, I do occasionally still get some bloating, sufficient that I take a DeGas before going to bed to make sure I sleep. Can't tell what brings it on--haven't associated it with anything in particular. I figure I'm still healing, though, and do not particularly worry about it.

I tried an elimination diet to figure out what was causing the itching that was driving me crazy, and have been able to reintroduce dairy light (cultured dairy--have been milk and cream intolerant for years), corn and all nightshades except tomato which I can have in limited quantity. But no more soy for this gal. It just means I have to do more baking.

By the way, how could your doc say celiac was nothing to worry about??? Well, worry, no, but avoid gluten, YES!

Neroli

Colleen.C Newbie
Colleen.C
Posted
  • Author

Hi Neroli..thankyou for that! I can't find half the flours I've heard of in the binn inn and I don't exactly trust them either. Who knows where those scoops have been!!! LOL

I have cut out the soy for now but had chocolate and icecream for the last two days and still got the bloating. I generally stay away from milk but now and then go nuts on choccy LOL and then regret it. I have gastric reflux too so I think it's a little of that also.

What do you use to DeGas? I have Losec for the reflux but it never seems to do any good.

By the way..nice to meet you! Since going gluten free I have met lots of of other sufferers so it's nice to know we are not alone. :)

mushroom Proficient
mushroom
Posted

. Who knows where those scoops have been!!! _________________________________________________________________________________________

Yeah, I tend to worry about those scoops too :unsure:

__________________________________________________________________________________________

I have cut out the soy for now but had chocolate and icecream for the last two days and still got the bloating.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

If you are still eating chocolate you are still eating soy unless you eat the Lindt 70% or 85% dark chocolate. Most chocolate (except for Whitakers) also has some gluten. And if you are lactose intolerant and still eating ice cream you deserve to suffer! :P

_______________________________________________________________________________________

What do you use to DeGas? I have Losec for the reflux but it never seems to do any good.

___________________________________________________________________________________________

It's funny, I guess most folks are acidic, not bloaty, because I was always told to use antacids, etc. , which did absolutely nothing for me. Then I found GasEx in the U.S., and down here DeGas is the name of the product. They are both simethicone which helps break up the gassy bubbles and relieve the pressure. You have to get them from the chemist--they often have them behind the counter.

I think you should be totally strict with the diet for a couple of weeks, then try eliminating the soy as well and see what happens. And no more ice cream.

Good luck, Neroli

Colleen.C Newbie
Colleen.C
Posted
  • Author

I only ate the icecream and chocolate to prove that's what was doing it. I have cut out the dairy now and will stick to my diet for a while then try cutting out the soy.

Most of the chocolate over here is on the safe list and gluten free so I wasn't worried about the gluten just the milk.

Surely if we get our diets under control there should be no more bloating?

Thankyou!

Aleshia Contributor
Aleshia
Posted
Hi all :)

I have been on the gluten-free diet for about 6 weeks after many years of suffering with stomach pains and D and.. after reading this forum.. many other problems including depression.

Celiacs showed up in a blood test about 2 years ago but my doctor says it's nothing to worry about. She has been been referring me to the hospital for about 9 years now and I have suffered with these problems for over 17 years! You have to be dying before the hospital will see you so nothing has been done about my symptoms except blaming it on food poisoning..which none of my family get at the same time as me..or irritable bowel disorder.

I have been skinny for many years but over the last 5 or 6 years have had drastic weight loss. I can put it on now and then but get sick and lose it all plus more every time.

I recently went to my doctor and cried like a baby because I was so worried about my weight and the constant tiredness and depression. She seems to think that 47 kgs is a good weight for me!! I once weighed 10 1/2 stone so 47 kgs is not good for me especially since all my bones are sticking out now and I have lost most of my muscles.

Anyway I wouldn't leave until she did something and all she would do was give me a "Green Script" for sports Waikato. They rang me and after talking to them they referred me to a dietitian. She asked me a lot of questions and is convinced that I have Celiacs. After reading this forum I agree with her.

A few days after starting the diet I felt much better. I have stuffed up a few times and one or two local chefs have stuffed up for me as well :angry:

I find now that I am really sensitive to anything with gluten and get the bloated stomach almost straight away and the pains and D within 2 or 3 hours.

I have always had a problem with milk and 4 of my children were born with lactose intolerance, problems with soy milk and one even with breast milk so I am trying to keep off dairy as well but today I went to bin inn and bought some new flours. I can't stand rice flour. I find it very gritty so I got some buckwheat flour, soy flour and some rolled buckwheat for my muesli.

I ate some of the muesli and when my loaf of bread was cooled down I ate 2 slices of it..it was very nice too..but I got the bloated stomach again but nothing else. I'm just hoping I'll get some sleep tonite.

So what I'm wondering is this..could it have been the buckwheat flour or the soy flour?

I'm so hoping I don't have to give up Soy as well.

Has anyone else been sick with buckwheat flour?

was just wondering about bin inn... did you use a scoop that someone else would have used in wheat flour?? also, I lived in New Zealand for 5 years... not sure what a stone is though is it like 14 pounds or something like that? I would say that the doctors here are much more help than there but I think in your case they would be since you are losing weight. is there any way you can go to the doctor and just ask them to do the blood test for you? would your dietician be able to recommend a doctor for you who is knowledgeable about celiac disease?

Kaycee Collaborator
Kaycee
Posted
was just wondering about bin inn... did you use a scoop that someone else would have used in wheat flour?? also, I lived in New Zealand for 5 years... not sure what a stone is though is it like 14 pounds or something like that? I would say that the doctors here are much more help than there but I think in your case they would be since you are losing weight. is there any way you can go to the doctor and just ask them to do the blood test for you? would your dietician be able to recommend a doctor for you who is knowledgeable about celiac disease?

Another hello from New Zealand. This time from Whangarei.

Binn Inn, I remember going into one thinking I might try to mix my own flours, but the gluten free flours were below barley flour mixes etc etc. I too was so worried about contamination and those scoops could easily go from one bin to another no sweat. What's to stop someone accidently re-filling with the wrong flours? So I talked to the owners, and while I was there they moved things around till I was happy. I promised to be back, but unfortunately I broke my promise and haven't been back! Naughty I is. I probably won't go back.

Yes Aleshia, a stone is 14lbs. I always find it hard to convert stone to lbs. But here in NZ we work in metric, have been for so many long year, but I haven't forgotten lbs and ounces.

Cathy

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Colleen.C Newbie
Colleen.C
Posted
  • Author

It's maddening really..bin inn has "gluten free" labelling on their flours but I don't think it is. You are right though, they do have glutened flours above the gluten free ones and lids are always left open and who knows if they use the same scoop to refill all of those bins. Everyone recommends them but I won't be.

It is so very hard to find the flours we need elsewhere though..unless we pay a fortune.

I have been really careful with my diet the last few days and have only eaten safe meat, veges and fruit, eggs and dairy. I still have a bloated stomach by the afternoon but nothing else. So who knows what's going on. I know I can't have too much dairy but I've been like that for many years and it only makes me feel sick, so do eggs but nothing like what gluten does to me.

I also couldn't figure out what was making my hands cracked and sore..I thought it was the gloves I constantly use at work or their soap but it wasn't until I stopped using my new conditioner that my hands started getting better.

  • 1 year later...
MerrySea Newbie
MerrySea
Posted

Hello,

I am new here ad I am living in Nelson,NZ.

Anyone else here in NZ or Nelson?

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      how much gluten do I need to eat before blood tests?

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      after several years of issues with a para-gland issue, my endo has decided it's a good idea for me to be tested for celiac disease. I am 70 yrs old and stunned to learn that you can get celiac this late in life. I have just gradually stopped eating most foods that contain gluten over the past several years- they just make me feel ill- although I attributed it to other things like bread spiking blood sugar- or to the things I ate *with* the bread or crackers etc   I went to a party in Nov and ate a LOT of a vegan roast made with vital wheat gluten- as well as stuffing, rolls and pie crust... and OMG I was so sick! the pain, the bloating, the gas, the nausea... I didn't think it would ever end (but it did) and I was ready to go the ER but it finally subsided.   I mentioned this to my endo and now she wants me to be tested for celiac after 2 weeks of being on gluten foods. She has kind of flip flopped on how much gluten I should eat, telling me that if the symptoms are severe I can stop. I am eating 2-3 thin slices of bread per day (or english muffins) and wow- it does make me feel awful. But not as bad as when I ate that massive amnt of vital wheat gluten. so I will continue on if I have to... but what bothers me is - if it IS celiac, it seems stupid for lack of a better word, to intentionally cause more damage to my body... but I am also worried, on the other hand, that this is not a long enough challenge to make the blood work results valid.   can you give me any insight into this please?   thank you
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